One of the hottest new programming languages, Kotlin is being prioritised by some of the world’s leading companies. Since first hitting the scene in 2016, this open-source language has quickly built a reputation as one of the key pillars to the future of development.
But what exactly is Kotlin, will it eventually bury Java and do you need to learn it in 2022? Let’s find out.
Kotlin: a definition
Like a spiced-up Java, Kotlin is designed to hit the same notes as the classic programming language, while addressing all the flaws and limitations that make it unsuitable for the future. At a time when productivity is becoming increasingly important to innovators the world over, Kotlin takes the coding experience to a new place.
Kotlin is an open-source, statistically typed programming language that’s designed to work on almost any platform, principally Android, JVM, JavaScript and Native. Inspired by Java, its USP is its simplicity and safety. It’s also 100% interoperable with Java – all Java frameworks and libraries are compatible with Kotlin, so the two can co-exist.
Kotlin has both object-oriented and functional constructs, making it very flexible, with functional programming features such as higher-order functions, function types and lambdas.
How many people use Kotlin?
An estimated 5 million people used Kotlin in 2021. This includes 1.3 million active developers – people who edit code from one month to the next.
What is Kotlin used for?
It can be used for both server-side and client-side applications, both for web and Android. Developers will soon be able to use it for macOS and iOS platforms too.
As well as mobile and server-side applications, Kotlin is also being used for data science.
What’s the history of Kotlin?
Kotlin was built by software development tool creators JetBrains in 2010. As most of their products were developed in Java, they decided to build a Java-based language that was more concise, while introducing new constructs such as high-order functions.
Kotlin’s audience grew steadily over the years until, in 2019, Google announced that Kotlin was its preferred language for Android app developers. It’s now the second most popular JVM language, behind Java.
Kotlin vs Java
Kotlin does pretty much everything Java does, but does it better.
It’s more lightweight, cleaner and more concise than Java, particularly when it comes to writing data classes and callbacks. It’s also safer, with inbuilt null safety a prime feature.
The one clear argument for Java over Kotlin is that Java is more widely used and most Android documentation examples are in Java. So, for complete beginners, learning Java might be an easier ride. That’s not based on Java being better though, so isn’t really a compelling reason in the long run.
Despite the temptation to throw them head to head in competition, Kotlin and Java both compile to bytecode, which means they can be used in conjunction in the same project.
This is why many experts believe they’ll coexist. At least for the time being.
The key Kotlin benefits for developers
Let’s take a look at why Kotlin is such a key programming language in 2021.
- It’s fast and concise – Kotlin uses around 40% less code than Java
- It’s safe – mainly due to the addition of null safety
- Simple extension functions – developers can easily extend the functionality of classes without the need to inherit from a class
- It simplifies the creation of data classes
- It handles casts automatically, in a ‘smart’ way
- It’s very flexible, with the ability to carry out both object oriented and functional programming
Why are companies making the switch to Kotlin?
For two key reasons:
- Reduced development time – as Kotlin uses less lines of code than alternatives like Java, developers can read and edit code a lot faster and more efficiently. This means a major reduction in overall development time.
- Fewer app crashes – not only does fewer lines of code mean higher productivity, it means locating and ironing out bugs is far simpler. Using a code that’s more concise takes the hassle out of long term maintenance.
Is Kotlin hard to learn?
No. In fact, the makers of Kotlin have specifically designed it to be easy to pick up. While mastering its most advanced features will definitely take a lot of time and effort, getting to grips with the basics should be fairly straightforward.
Do I need to learn Kotlin?
There are some that will say Kotlin isn’t yet an essential programming language and therefore it’s not important to learn it now.
Still, there’s no doubt which direction development is moving. It’s headed towards Kotlin over Java, pure and simple. The good news is, if you already know Java, learning Kotlin will be a piece of cake.
In short, learn Java, then learn Kotlin. You’ll 100% need to know Kotlin if you’re hoping to build a career as any kind of developer or data scientist, as more and more companies are realising the benefits of this fantastic programming language.
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